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No questions asked in drive-by gun buyback event

Rifles stick out of a bin during a gun buyback event in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

Long lines of cars have formed as Los Angeles gun owners turn in weapons for up to $US200 ($A193.65), in a gun buyback event brought forward after the Connecticut school shooting.

Authorities promised there would be no questions asked at the drive-through style event, where owners handed over weapons including assault rifles and Uzis directly from their cars, in exchange for grocery store gift cards.

But a couple of pro-gun activists also turned out to protest against the Gun Buyback Program organised in traditionally liberal Los Angeles, trying to dissuade owners from giving in weapons to be destroyed.

Sergeant Rudy Lopez of the LA Police Department (LAPD) said the event was going well compared to previous years.

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"It's looking very positive. A lot of people are waiting an hour and a half [in line] and we have so far 420 handguns, rifles and shotguns," he said in Van Nuys, north of LA, one of two locations where weapons could be turned in.

"People want to do something to do their part to get more guns off the streets," he added, about halfway through the day.

A bin full of handguns. By noon, police had collected more than 420 weapons. Photo: AFP

The fact that police were asking no questions was a key incentive. "See that? That's a silencer," said Sergeant Lopez, pointing at an assault weapon. "That's illegal. We didn't say anything."

Weapons turned in also included TEC-9 semi-automatic handguns, as well as World War II rifles and vintage shotguns, one dating from 1895.

Separate rubbish bins were available for rifles, handguns, shotguns and ammunition and one for magazines. They were half-full by lunchtime. A table displayed at least 16 assault weapons.

Police were offering a $US100 grocery store gift card for handguns, rifles and shotguns, or a $US200 card for automatic weapons. Photo: AFP

Gun owners were given a $US100 grocery store gift card in exchange for handguns, rifles and shotguns, or a $US200 card for automatic weapons.

"Cities and states must join with the federal government to do everything we can, as quickly as we can, to keep our communities safe," said LA mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Mr Villaraigosa brought forward the date of the event, usually held in May, following the December 14 shooting at a primary school in Newtown, Connecticut, in which a gunman killed 26 people including 20 young children.

Critics question the effectiveness of gun buyback events, arguing that the weapons surrendered tend to be the least likely to be used in criminal activities, such as guns which are old or malfunctioning.

Lopez said police would check the weapons handed in, to make sure they are not reported as stolen or lost, and hand them back to their rightful owners if they are. All other weapons were due to be melted, he said.

In the line of cars, one 51-year-old man - nearly all those returning weapons were male - said he was turning in four rifles that belonged to his late father.

"The guns have been sitting around, and there's a money incentive, so why not?" he said, declining to give his name.

Nearby at least two separate protesters voiced their disapproval at the buyback program.

"Get $$ for your gun ... We buy your Gun to donate it to a woman in danger. An armed woman will not be a victim," said one poster, advertising the website SonsofLibertyLA.com.

"Many countries have fallen into tyranny because people were unarmed," said George Siegel, a 35-year-old merchant mariner.

Asked about criticism that the Connecticut shootings could have been partly due to America's liberal gun laws, he said: "That's very disrespectful. They are trying to play with people's emotions."